machine translation tools webinar
TRANSCRIPT
Creating AyudaLegalIL.org: An Experiment with Machine Translation
About Our TIG Grant
• Project of LAF (formerly Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago)
• Started in January 2011• $157,100• Funded: creation and promotion of
AyudaLegalIL.org, 2 year Spanish Outreach and Content Coordinator and integration of machine translation tools and tools to create mirrored sites
Staffing & Structuring the Project
• LAF oversaw the grant• LAF’s Community Engagement Unit
oversaw the outreach component• LAF subcontracted with ILAO for:– Technical Development– Content translation of Existing
Statewide Website Content– Implementation of the outreach plan
The Technology Behind AyudaLegalIL.org
• Google Translate API• A Spanish NSMI• Site Builder Tools
The Google Translate API
• REST-based service that allows seamless translation from a web site
• Everything happens machine to machine; the Google part is completely hidden from the use
Thoughts on Google Translate’s Utility
• Plain Language translates best• Short sentences give better
translations• It has improved significantly in the
past year
How Much?
• Google charges $20/million characters translated
• ILAO has spent less than $100 in Google Translate costs since January 2011
Spanish NSMIWill Be Available on GoogleDocs and we’ll share it with LSNTAP
The “Mirrored Site Builder”
• How it works: – Took English web templates and replaced English
text with variable names– Created a database table to map variable names
to Spanish translations– Built tools to allow us to set the Spanish
translations– Built tools to allow us to generate and re-
generate the Spanish website on demand
Our Site Builder
Tech Docs Coming Soon
• Translated NSMI• List of Variables and their translations used on
AyudaLegalIL.org• Technical Documentation on Google
Translate, including code samples in ColdFusion
• Technical Documentation on the Site Builder
Content & Marketing
The SWAC
• Spanish Website Advisory Committee• 7 Local Pro-Latino Organizations• Meeting every other month
What Content to Translate?
1. ¿Cómo los Antecedentes Penales Pueden Afectar mi
Estatus Migratorio?
2. La U-Visa: Beneficios de Inmigración para Víctimas de
Crimen
3. ¿Cuánto Tiempo Tomará el Proceso de Ejecución
Hipotecaria sobre Mi Casa?
4. Obtener Estampillas de Comida (SNAP)
5. ¿Cómo Puedo Obtener la Residencia Permanente en
los EE.UU.?
6. Consejos para Padres Separados: Cómo Ayudar a
sus Hijos con el Proceso de la Separación
1. Getting a Divorce in Illinois
2. Evicting Your Tenant
3. Getting Custody of a Child
4. Creating a Non-Profit Organization
5. Changing Your Name in Illinios
6. Applying for Unemployment Benefits
7. Expunging Your Criminal Record
1. How can a criminal record affect my immigration
status?
2. U Visa: Immigration benefits for victims of crime
3. How long will a foreclosure on my home take?
4. Getting Food Stamps
5. Getting permanent residency in the US
6. Tips for parents who are separating
Marketing the Site
• Usability testing• Newspapers and other publications• Radio• Presentations
Website Usage
Mobile use …
25% of visits from mobile (16%)
60% Android » 31% iOS » 3% Blackberry
What would we have done differently?
• Prioritized content based on Spanish not on English• Had we not been limited to translating content, we
probably would have developed some new content directly in Spanish
• Quality assurance sooner--especially when English content is changed
Questions?
• Gwen Daniels, Director of Technology Development, [email protected]
• Dennis Rios, Spanish Content and Outreach Coordinator, [email protected]